


Nocturnal Vanguard

by BenevolentErrancy



Category: Dragon Age - All Media Types, Dragon Age II
Genre: Cuddling & Snuggling, Established Relationship, Fluff, M/M, Nightmares, Sleeping Together
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-03-25
Updated: 2019-03-25
Packaged: 2019-12-07 08:22:44
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,354
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18232355
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BenevolentErrancy/pseuds/BenevolentErrancy
Summary: Fenris slept lightly, always had, and it was a skill that had served him well over the years. It ensured he was alert, ready, prepared to act. It kept him safe and secure for a long time.So no, Fenris did not regret that he was a light sleeper.  He would, however, admit that it had some unforeseen consequences since his bed now tended to be occupied by two additional bodies.





	Nocturnal Vanguard

**Author's Note:**

> A response to an old kink meme prompt:  
> I don't care how or why. Give me these three [Hawke/Fenris/Anders] having a snuggle pile. I'd prefer if it wasn't a 'Anders and Fenris are both into Hawke so they put up with each other for his sake' scenario, and if Hawke was not in the middle :)
> 
> I can't even remember if I posted this on the meme when it was first written, but I've rediscovered it and decided to dust it off for ao3

Fenris slept lightly, always had. To this day he wouldn't be able to tell you whether it was born from necessity as a slave or if it was simply his nature but as far as he was concerned it had served him well over the years. As a slave it had meant he woke quickly and easily when his master approached him, no matter how little rest he had had previous, and that he could steal moments of rest when he was left to kneel or stand in some corner with nothing with which to otherwise occupy himself. These were the sort of skills that saved you from punishment. As a fugitive it had meant he was able to stay one step ahead of the slavers and mercenaries sent to capture him, and show bandits who thought that a lone elf camping out by the side of the road was an easy target the error of their ways.

As a resident of Kirkwall even though it meant fitful sleeps as he got use to the settling of the mansion and the noises of the city, it also meant he had been constantly prepared should Danarius ever return to his mansion or should Hawake come pounding on his door at some obscene hour of the day or night looking for a travelling companion. And though Fenris had learned to love being able to doze in bed for an entire morning with no need to get up if he didn't damn well feel like it, waking early meant he could shop in the markets before they became overrun, could take pleasure in the quietness of the early morning, one of the only times Kirkwall seemed to calm, and would sometimes even meet up with Aveline to do morning drills as the rest of their friends slept.

So no, Fenris did not regret that he was a light sleeper. He would, however, admit that it had some unforeseen consequences since his bed now tended to be occupied by two additional bodies.

Well, not precisely, it was rarely _his_ bed that held all three of them; his was a fine size for one elf but it struggled to accommodate one elf and two unreasonably large humans. The only time it was ever forced to perform such a feat was when the others had decided he was being unnecessarily stubborn in his refusal to join them for the night – Fenris liked having his own home though, and even if the mage was happy to leave his sewer Fenris still intended to keep and use his mansion, regardless of Hawke's repeated offers to make a more permanent move. While they seemed to respect that, they did not always extend that same courtesy to his holing himself away for days at a time.

And that was why Fenris now found himself blinking blearily awake to Hawke's dark room, pressed between two warm bodies and not at all sure why he was awake at such an hour. For this very reason Fenris often preferred not to be in the middle – while he loved the attention and reassuring press of lovers on either side of him while awake, the comfort always seemed to become oppressive in the night. Too hot, too many limbs moving around him, too much unattended contact with his tattoos, too many ways for his sleep to be disturbed. So at first he simply assumed it was Hawke's snoring that had woken him – _again_ – since the man was draped bodily over him and Fenris could feel his chest rumbling against his back... but for the most part Hawke was silent tonight, only snuffling softly against the back of Fenris' neck. The man was almost as bad as his mabari, which Fenris could just see curled up by the hearth and shuffling about in its sleep. Perhaps that was what had woken him, the dog whining as it chased bunnies or bandits or whatever it was dogs dreamed of. That, likewise, would not be a first.

Fenris was just on the verge of closing his eyes and drifting back to sleep when Anders shifted, elbowing him in the chest and letting out a low, frantic whine.

That would be it then.

He waited quietly, to see if the mage would settle again, but instead he just twitched again under the blankets, breath coming out heavy gasps. As he twisted, Fenris could just catch a glimpse of his face in the light of the low-banked fire, creased and distressed.

“Mage,” Fenris hissed, nudging him. “Wake up. Anders.”

In his sleep Anders just shook his head, mouth forming silent words, and raised his arms senselessly into the air. Batting at nothing, fighting some creation of the Fade. When this relationship was young and delicate and dangerous still, when Hawke had been as much an intermediary as a lover, when Fenris and Anders had still been negotiating exactly what they felt for each other, moments like this would have terrified Fenris. Waking in the night to see a mage, an abomination no less, by his side with some Fade monstrosity in his mind. The first time, in fact, Fenris believed he had bodily kicked Anders out of bed, but Anders had been grateful enough to be woken, even if it was from his ass connecting with the cold bedroom floor, that it hadn't been mentioned again. Fenris' fears had abetted though after repeated nights of this, of waking Anders up – and of being woken up by Anders. When night terrors were close at the edge of your mind, sleep was rarely an attractive prospect, and they had both spent long hours sitting up with the other, and Fenris had since learned that the dreams that truly distressed Anders, the ones that left him sweating and shaking and which tended to wake Fenris up were not the ones caused by demons trying to deal but memories that refused to leave. Not unlike Fenris' own.

Fenris wiggled out of Hawke's arms so he could push himself upright and give the mage a proper shake. His skin felt clammy where Fenris' hand curled around it. “ _Anders,_ ” he snapped.

Anders started at that, eyes snapping open and breath catching in his throat as his head shot around, scanning the room frantically, panic not immediately subsiding as he struggled to free himself from the blankets, to sit up, to–

“You are well,” said Fenris gently in the dark, hand coming to rest softly on Anders' back.

Anders stilled at the touch, and then turned to face Fenris, sleepy confusion still twisting his face as he tried to make sense of where he was and where he had been moments ago.

“Fenris,” said Anders at length, palpable relief in his voice. It was almost odd to think how normal it had become to hear his voice said in such way, distressing only because of the fear that had made that relief necessary.

“It was only a dream,” said Fenris. “It's gone now.”

Anders nodded vaguely. His mind was clearly still lingering there, on whatever he had seen in the Fade. “Yeah, I know, I know. Just... Maker, you'd think it'd just _stop_ at some point, wouldn't you?”

“Mm,” said Fenris. He knew exactly what Anders meant, but he was also not keen on discussing it. He was still of the mind that if he ignored his nightmares long enough sooner or later they would simply vanish and he could stop waking up with his heart in his throat, certain that it was Danarius or Hadriana leaning over him rather than Anders or Hawke. “...Do you want to talk about it?”

“Ha, flames, no. I just want to go back to sleep.” Anders ran a frustrated hand over his face; the other one had since come to find Fenris' own, lacing their fingers together so tightly it made Fenris' knuckles ache. “It's just... Maker, it was so _dark_.”

“Solitary?” asked Fenris gently. To give comfort... it was still unfamiliar territory for Fenris, though he found himself in a position that demanded it unfortunately often, since he was often the first to wake to his lovers' nightmares. So he trod carefully.

Anders gave a noise that was as much frustration as affirmation. Fenris sighed. While the silence was normally perfect to lull Fenris back to sleep after a nightmare, to be reminded he was somewhere safe and calm, where there were no demands on him, no one watching or judging, no danger, it had the opposite effect on Anders after he was forced to relive his confinement. The darkness, the silence, it became a living nightmare; those were the dreams that often had him awake the rest of the night, burning candles in the library.

“Wassgoin'on?” came Hawke's sleepy voice from somewhere behind Fenris' back.

“Nothing, go to sleep,” was Anders' response even as Fenris grunted, “Nightmares.” He ignored Anders' glare – Anders and Hawke teamed up against him frequently enough that Fenris had no qualms unleashing their overeager puppy of a lover on the mage from time to time.

Sure enough, Hawke's sleep ruffled head immediately rose from the pillows. “Y'okay?” he asked between yawns.

“Yes, I'm fine. Go back to sleep,” huffed Anders.

“Will you be going back to sleep?” asked Fenris, and the grumpy look he got told him without a doubt that Anders wouldn't be, he damn well knew that, and there was no need for him to point it out to Hawke.

“Do you want to talk about it?” asked Hawke.

“Not really.”

But Hawke was not the sort of man to take a hint easily. “Come on,” he said, leaning over Fenris and opening his arms.

Fenris, however, could take a hint just fine. As gracefully as he could with sleep-heavy limbs, clinging blankets, and a man on either side of him Fenris clambered over Anders, nudging at him until they had switched spots, with Anders pulled in against Hawke's broad chest and Fenris curled against Anders' back.

“Raise the fire a little, love?” asked Hawke.

Anders lifted his head from where it had been pulled against Hawke's shoulder to frown at him. “You don't need to do that. I'm a big boy, I don't need coddling, I can go get a candle and–”

“Do what?” asked Hawke, all innocence. “I'm not doing anything. It's just very dark in here. And with two handsome men in my bed, why wouldn't I want to see them better? If you don't want to I could always kick Fenris out of bed and make him stoke it but that means listening to him grumble about it for the next half an hour.”

Fenris couldn't see Anders' face but he could practically feel the mage's eyes narrow at Hawke. With a gesture though the fire roared into renewed life, bathing the room in light and making the dog jumping awake in surprise.

“That's better,” said Hawke, grinning. “Now come cuddle me, I need cuddles.”

Anders grumbled, but as he shuffled more comfortable against Hawke's side Fenris could see the barely restrained grin on his face. Fenris understood that feeling, he was still continuously amazed the by lengths his friends would go to for him, the inconvenience they willingly shouldered without even waiting to be asked simply to make something easier on him. It felt odd to be on the other side too, to see Anders' evident surprise and hesitant pleasure because the idea that they would exile Anders to the library or some such thing after a nightmare seemed ludicrous. The inconvenience didn't even factor in. And Fenris knew by now that it was all the more true for Hawke, who gave his heart, his love, his time, his patience away to people like it was an unending spring that he was desperate to share.

“If we're all awake anyway, we may as well read another chapter,” said Hawke, leaning to the side to fish the book they had been reading together in the evenings out from under the bed. “I can't wait to see what happens to the scullery maid.”

Fenris took that as his cue to press up against Anders, resting his head against his shoulder and looking appropriately heavy-eyed and tired so Hawke wouldn't get any clever ideas about trying to make him read. While his skills had progressed he had no interest in wrestling with letters at an hour like this. Hawke did nothing of the sort though, just slung one around around Anders' shoulders so it also fell heavy and comforting against Fenris', while Fenris himself spread an arm across Anders' chest so that his hand rested on Hawke's stomach. With the three of them all but sitting on top of each other, Hawke deemed his pile of lovers appropriately arranged and opened the book to where the marker had been left. As if deciding this meant his master was sufficiently distracted to forget the rules about pawprints and beds, the mabari took his chance and leapt up into the crowd, dropping heavily on Anders' lap making him groan and complain in the half-hearted way he always took up against Hawke's dog. It didn't take long though for Anders' hand to find the mabari's broad head and begin running his fingers through its fur as the dog panted, heavy and warm and alive. (Fenris was beginning to suspect that the mabari knew exactly what it was doing on nights like this, and he wouldn't pretend not to appreciate it.)

As Anders breathing become deeper and deeper, Fenris could feel himself beginning to drift off to the sound of Hawke's voice. He doubted he would hear the end of this chapter, even with the fire still casting the room in a nearly morning-bright glow, but despite the exhaustion he still figured that it was for the best that he was such a light sleeper.

(He might reconsider this thought when he was jarred away not fifteen minutes later though by Anders laughing loudly at something Hawke read, making his entire body, which Fenris was still resting on thank you, shake hard enough to make his head bounce.)

 


End file.
